Bastian and Toni

Midfield engine room sparkles against Valencia

Created on 20-09-2012 at 00:00 AM

Bastian Schweinsteiger's goal celebrations following his 38th-minute opener in the Champions League Group F meeting with Valencia signified blissful relief and unconfined joy. The FCB vice-captain raced towards the crowd with his arms outstretched, before falling to the damp turf and bellowing with delight.

Seconds later, every single Bayern man, with the exception of keeper Manuel Neuer, formed a scrum around the goalscorer, sharing his thrill at opening his account in Europe this season. It was not just any old goal for the 28-year-old, who suffered the anguish of missing his club's last penalty in the shootout against Chelsea in the 2011/12 final precisely four months earlier.

“It's yesterday's news. Obviously we'll never forget, but it has nothing to do with playing Valencia," Schweinsteiger said afterwards, confirming he was sufficiently recovered from the bitter defeat on 19 May “so that I'm no longer thinking about it every day." Instead, Bayern and their marquee midfielder are totally focused on new targets.